Unsmiling Sangiovese
Rosso di Montalcino 2010, Argiano ($22.60, 10252869)
100% Sangiovese. Manually harvested. Fermented on the skins in stainless steel vats for two to three weeks. After malolactic fermentation, transferred to second vintage French oak barrels and Slovenian oak botti for maturation. Botttled the following fall. 14.0% ABV per the SAQ, 14.5% per the label.
Dusty cherry and terracotta with hints of baled hay, sage/bay, cinnamon, alcohol. Medium bodied. Silky on the attack. The foreground is occupied by fine but very firm tannins and bright acidity, the background by fruit that’s more kirschy than fresh. Not much depth, not much to chew on. Initially so dry that arid might be a better descriptor, so astringent that I wanted to go brush my teeth, it sweetened and softened a little as it breathed. Fair finish with some tobacco joining the cherry and alcohol.
Definitely a food wine but not now or probably ever a very beguiling one. Next time I’ll look a little further north to Chianti for my Sangiovese hit.
Tasting with Aldo Vacca
Aldo Vacca, the managing director of Produttori del Barbaresco, was in Quebec recently to attend a series of events. One of them was a trade tasting of eight PdB wines – the 2010 Langhe and seven 2007 Barbarescos, including six single-vineyard wines. I was lucky enough to be offered a place and ended up sitting immediately to Aldo’s left. Many thanks to oenopole for this rare opportunity to taste these wines – long among my favourites – and to spend time chatting with Aldo, a man very much like the wines of the cooperative he heads: down-to-earth, dapper, focused, eloquent and ultimately inspiring.
Considered by many to be the top wine-growers’ cooperative in the world, Produttori del Barbaresco made its first wines in 1960. That, however, was a “terrible vintage” (quoting Aldo) in the region, so the first wines that bore the PdB’s label were the 1961s. In 1967 the co-op and Gaja became the first winemakers to produce single-vineyard bottlings. The co-op currently has 52 members.
Aldo says there are four keys to the co-op’s high quality and reputation:
- The region. All the grapes, even those in the entry-level Langhe, come from the Barbaresco DOC.
- Co-op members must sell all the Nebbiolo grapes they grow to the co-op – “100% belonging,” as Aldo puts it – though they’re free to do whatever they want with the other grapes they grow (usually Barbera and Dolcetto).
- Each load of grapes is evaluated and paid for based on its quality (sugar, colour and tannins are the current evaluation criteria). In 2012, the prices ranged from €2.00 to €5.20 a kilo and averaged €4.20.
- Most importantly, in Aldo’s opinion, are the single-vineyard bottlings.
Not only are the Produttori admired for making some of the most classic and beguiling Barbarescos, their wines are also seen as delivering unbeatable QPR. As I wrote of the 2001 Rio Sordo a few years back, “It may seem odd to refer to a $50 bottle as a bargain, but that’s exactly what this is.” When I asked Aldo why the co-op didn’t raise its prices, he shrugged and said the members make a good living as it is and “they’re not greedy.”
All of PdB’s Barbarescos are made the same way. Fermentation takes place in large, temperature-controlled cement and stainless steel vats using cultivated “Barolo” yeasts and lasts about three weeks. It is followed by lengthy maceration with regular pump-overs and punch-downs of the cap. The wines are then transferred to Slavonian oak botti for 36 months’ maturation, after which they are bottled unfiltered and with a small squirt of sulphur dioxide and laid down another six or more months before release.
There are nine single-vineyard bottlings. As all are made exactly the same way, the only difference between them is the vineyards the grapes were grown in. This makes a horizontal tasting an opportunity to taste the influence of terroir.
The Barbaresco vineyards run from fertile land near the Tanaro River to vineyards higher up the slopes of the valley, where the soil is less rich and more limestoney. The lower vineyards produce fruitier, more forward wines, the higher vineyards wines with more depth and power.
2007 was a mild winter with early bud break; the growers were afraid of frost damage but the temperature never went below freezing. The summer was also mild. Rain was manageable. The fall was near ideal and the harvest was the longest on record. Aldo feels the single-vineyard wines from this vintage should peak at “seven to ten years of life.”
Aldo characterized the most recent vintages as follows: 2010 “light,” 2011 “extremely ripe” and 2012 “ideal, between the two.”
You’ll find my tasting notes after the jump.
My life as a high-roller, part deux
Dropped by my neighbourhood SAQ yesterday to pick up wines for next week’s tasting. After saying hello, the senior wine advisor disappeared into the back room and reemerged holding a glass that contained a small pour of a deep maroon-coloured wine. All he said about it was that the bottle had been uncorked more than 12 hours earlier and was only now beginning to open up.
Bordeauxish nose of candied cassis, cedar, tobacco and some graphite. Full-bodied and rich on the palate though not heavy, the texture somehow both silky and velvety. The mouth-filling fruit is too ripe and sweet – not austere enough – for a Bordeaux. The structure is fine-grained, the tannins tight but not forbidding. Oak, obviously of very high quality, has been lavishly but not overwhelmingly applied. The finish is long. Possessed of a restraint, balance, fluidity, savour that seem more Old Worldish than New. A handsome wine, clearly a thoroughbred, with no flaws other than, perhaps, a lack of soul.
I guessed Italian but it didn’t occur to me that a lowly Classique store would stock, let alone pour the latest vintage of one of Italy’s highest-profile wines, the first super-Tuscan: Sassicaia Bolgheri 2009, Sassicaia, Tenuta San Guido ($169.00, 00743393). A blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Cabernet Franc. Macerated on the skins for about two weeks, with regular pump-overs and rack-and-returns. Matured in French oak barrels (one-third new) for 24 months. 13.5% ABV.
If I lived in a parallel universe and actually owned a bottle of this, I wouldn’t touch it for another eight to ten years.
MWG November 22nd tasting (5/5): Three Zins and a Syrah
Like many North American wine lovers, I cut my teeth on California wines. I used to buy them regularly; these days, hardly ever. Part of the reason is my evolving palate. But it’s also true that the wines have changed. With a few blessed exceptions, they’ve gotten bigger, heavier, fruitier, sweeter, oakier, more alcoholic, less refreshing, less food-friendly and, oddly, less characterful. Early vintages of Ridge’s Geyserville, including some legendary ones, regularly clocked in at 13% ABV or less. Martini used to make a light, supple, relatively pale Zin as quaffable as a Beaujolais. Good luck finding wines like those these days. Anyway, when reading these notes, bear in mind that these wines aren’t really up my alley anymore. And, as the tasting showed, people with palates more receptive to the fruit-driven New World style will probably find them more interesting than I did.
Zinfandel 2009, East Bench, Dry Creek Valley, Ridge Vineyards ($29.75, 11817690)
100% Zinfandel (rare for Ridge) from dry-farmed vines planted in 2000 and 2001. Destemmed, crushed and fermented with native yeasts and twice daily pump-overs. Pressed after ten days’ maceration. Matured 13 months in American oak barrels, 20% new. Lightly sulphured at crush and during maturation. Lightly filtered at bottling. 15.2% ABV. This is Ridge’s fourth vintage of the wine.
Textbook Zin. Bramble berries, fresh fig, oak, spice, dried black tea. Rich, smooth and balanced. Fluid despite the weight. Built around an intense core of pure, unjammy fruit, with just enough acidity and tannins to avoid galumphingness. Dry, the high glycerin levels notwithstanding. Flaring finish. (Buy again? Maybe a bottle to go with grilled lamb next summer.)
Lytton Springs 2009, Dry Creek Valley, Ridge Vineyards ($42.25, 00513929)
71% Zinfandel, 23% Petite Syrah, 6% Carignane from dry-farmed vines some planted recently, others as far back as 1901. Destemmed, crushed and fermented with native yeasts and occasional pump-overs. A small amount of tartaric acid was added to a few very ripe lots. Pressed after eight days’ maceration. Matured 14 months in American oak barrels, 18% new. Lightly sulphured at crush and during maturation. Lightly fined”to moderate tannins.” Lightly filtered at bottling. 14.4% ABV.
Plum, spice and a hint of modelling clay. Similar to but deeper, broader and weightier than the East Bench. Pure, savoury fruit. Oak present but in check. Heady but not hot. Good structure and a long finish. Unfortunately, at this point it’s heavy and unrefreshing, less than the sum of its parts. Maybe time will improve things. (Buy again? Nope.)
Zinfandel 2009, Brandlin Vineyard, Mount Veeder, Peter Franus ($38.75, 00897652)
92% Zinfandel, 8% Charbono, Mourvèdre and Carignane from old, dry-farmed vines. Fermented 12 days at a relatively cool 80ºF (27ºC). Macerated 14 days before pressing. Matured 17 months in French oak barrels, 35% new. 15.5% ABV.
Blackberry and peppermint with sweet and savoury spice in the background. Smooth, satiny texture and not a lot of structure: this is mostly about the fruit, which is pure, sweet-and-sourish and given some depth by dried wood flavours. Dry, especially on the long, alcoholic – though not hot – finish. (Buy again? Only if in the mood for a full-bore Zin.)
Syrah 2009, Estate, Santa Ynez Valley, Beckmen Vineyards ($29.20, 11746941)
100% biodynamically farmed Syrah from eight different clonal selections grown in Beckman’s Purisima Mountain vineyard located in Ballard Canyon. The various lots were gently crushed and cold-soaked for two to five days. Fermented five to ten days with native yeasts and thrice daily punch-downs. Basket-pressed. Matured ten months in French oak barrels, 35% new. 14.6% ABV.
Appealing though un-Syrah-like nose: gingerbread, cassis and plum with some slate in the background. Full-bodied but fluid and fresh, due largely to its bright fruit and brisk acidity. Vanilla oak is noticeable but not cloying. To my palate, the flavours evoke a baked plum tart. Decent structure and length. While not a fan of the all-about-fruit style, I admit this has a certain charm. (Buy again? Probably not, though fans of California wines shouldn’t hesitate.)
MWG November 22nd tasting (4/5): Tre rossi eclettici
Sicilia IGT 2011, Frappato, Terre di Giumara, Caruso & Minini ($16.65, 11793173)
Caruso & Minini is a Marsala-based producer of a wide range of wines made from Sicilian and international grape varieties. Could find no technical information about this Frappato, which isn’t even mentioned on the winery’s website, nor have I learned which agency represents it in Quebec. The SAQ also carries one of C&M’s white varietals, the tasty 2011 Grecanico ($16.65, 11793181), whose constituent grape DNA profiling has shown to be the same as Soave’s Garganega. Both it and the Frappato are 14% ABV.
Dusty cherry, a hint of black licorice, faint herbs and not a lot else. Quite extracted but avoiding heaviness. The ripe fruit has a candied edge, though the wine is dry and savoury, with supple tannins and just enough acidity. Dried herbs mark the finish. Easy-going and affable if far from profound. Comes across as a warmer-climate take on the grape than Occhipinti’s and COS’s supreme – and, yes, much pricier – interpretations. A fairer comparison might be the Frappato from Tami, Occhipinti’s négociant label, which beats this on elegance and quaffability but not on fruity/juicy exuberance. (Buy again? Sure.)
Cesanese di Olevano Romano 2008, Cirsium, Cantine Ciolli (c. €20, importation valise)
100% Cesanese di Affile from a vineyard planted in 1953 and located about 40 km east of Rome. Manually harvested. Fermented in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks with frequent punching down. Macerated ten days, then racked into barrels for malolactic fermentation. Aged in barrels for about one year, bottled unfiltered and aged another two years before release. 14% ABV.
Savoury, even earthy nose: horse, graphite, dried herbs, tobacco. Medium- to full-bodied, more silky than velvety, dry. The dusty red fruit is pure and intense if not remarkably deep. Rough-hewn tannins and bright acidity make for an angular structure. Good length. An appealingly rustic wine that tastes like it might benefit from a couple more years in the cellar. (Buy again? Yes, if I could.)
Barolo 2007, Fratelli Alessandria ($40.25, 11797094)
100% Nebbiolo from six vineyards. Manually harvested. Fermented and macerated from 12 to 15 days in temperature-controlled tanks. Matured 32 to 34 months in large Slavonian and French oak casks, two months in stainless steel tanks and six or more months in the bottle. 14.5% ABV.
A bit of bricking at the rim suggests quick evolution. Raspberry rose, old wood and a hint of tar on the nose; silky, savoury red fruit and dried herbs on the palate. Somewhat austere despite the ripeness, and the tannins are still a little rebarbative. The long, aromatic finish shows some heat. Relatively approachable for a Barolo of this age, though a few more years in the cellar will do it no harm. If drinking now, carafe it at least a couple of hours before serving. (Buy again? If I weren’t so distracted by the Produttori del Barbaresco single-vineyard 2007s…)
MWG November 22nd tasting (3/5): A case study of terroir
While not part of the pioneering “Gang of Four” natural Beaujolais producers (Marcel Lapierre, Guy Breton, Jean-Paul Thévenet and Jean Foillard), Jean-Paul Brun has been making natural-leaning wines for a long time (his first vintage was 1977). Based in Charnay, in the southern Beaujolais, he also owns several cru vineyards in the north. He farms organically, harvests manually, ferments using the yeasts on the grapes’ skins and, preferring naturally lower alcohol levels, doesn’t chaptalize.
His other wine-making practices are more Burgundian than modern-day Beaujolaisian. Many Beaujolais producers favour carbonic maceration of whole clusters. But at Terres Dorées, the grapes are table-sorted, destemmed, placed in open vats and stomped. The resulting juice is macerated for three to four weeks, then transferred to concrete and/or oak vats, all depending on the cru and vintage. The wines are very lightly filtered and sulphured before bottling.
Though Brun’s wines have featured in several Mo’ Wine Group tastings, we’d never had the opportunity to taste side-by-side the three crus carried by the SAQ in the same vintage (Brun also produces a Fleurie that I’ve never seen on the monopoly’s shelves). As the wines are, for all intents and purposes, made identically, any discernible differences should be attributable to terroir. The idea behind this flight was to see what those differences would be.
Morgon 2010, Terres Dorées, Jean-Paul Brun ($19.85, 11589746)
100% Gamay from low-yielding old vines planted in very poor granitic and sandy soil in the Grand Cras section of the appellation, south of the Côte de Py. 12% ABV.
Effusively scented nose dominated by lightly candied cherry and slate. Rich and fluid. The ripe fruit is brightened by tangy acidity and deepened by faintly bitter minerals. The overriding impression is one of purity and freshness. Lovely and accessible, though like the other crus, capable of improving with some time in the cellar. (Buy again? Definitely.)
Côte de Brouilly 2010, Terres Dorées, Jean-Paul Brun ($19.25, 10520237)
100% Gamay from 50-year-old vines planted in blue granitic scree in the Petite Roche and Croix Desseigne sections of the appellation. 12% ABV.
Plummier, with a sappy, ferrous note. In the mouth, similar to – though more fruit-driven than – the Morgon, with the same mineral substrate. Silky texture, crisp acidity, good length. Enjoyable today but probably even better in two or three years. (Buy again? Yes.)
Moulin-à-Vent 2010, Terres Dorées, Jean-Paul Brun ($22.05, 10837331)
100% Gamay from low-yielding old vines planted in granitic soil in the Tour du Bief section of the appellation. 12% ABV.
Dark, inky, elegant nose: a step closer to Burgundy. The texture is smooth and velvety and the wine is the most structured of the three. But it’s also, for now, the most closed and least expressive. Vigorous chewing cracks open the door a little, revealing hints of cherry and black raspberry, forest floor and minerals. The potential is clearly there. Give it at least a couple more years in the cellar and up to ten. (Buy again? A patient yes.)
MWG November 22nd tasting (2/5): Three dry Vouvrays
Vouvray 2011, Les Argiles, Domaine François Chidaine ($25.55, 11461056)
100% biodynamically farmed Chenin Blanc from 40-year-old vines in several parcels. Manually harvested in several passes. Pneumatically pressed, fermented with native yeasts and matured in old wood demi-muids. No malolactic fermentation. 12.5% ABV.
A kaleidoscope of aromas and flavours: chalk, quince, melon, white and yellow stone fruit, citrus, linden, ginger and more. Thrilling balance between rich fruit and vibrant acidity. Long finish with crystalline minerals and a quinine-like bitter note. Wow! (Buy again? Definitely, for drinking now or cellaring up to a decade.)
Vouvray 2010, Clos Naudin, Philippe Foreau ($30.75, 11797220)
100% Chenin Blanc. Manually harvested in several passes. Pneumatically pressed with the stalks. Fermented with native yeasts. No chaptalization, acidification or malolactic fermentation. Matured in old barrels. Bottled with minimal sulphur. 13.5% ABV.
Reticent nose: “green almonds,” green pear, chalky minerals. Lacking coherence on first sip. Very dry with coursing acidity, pale white fruit and a streak of bitter minerals. Gained depth and appeal as it breathed and warmed, hinting at its potential. (Buy again? Only to stick in the cellar and forget about for a few years.)
Vouvray 2010, Domaine Vincent Carême ($23.45, 11633612)
100% organically farmed Chenin Blanc from vines 45 years old on average. Manually harvested. Fermented – full alcoholic, partial malolactic – and matured in old barrels. 14% ABV.
Ripe pear, flower sap, browning apple but the flavours turn cheesy in the glass and the wine falls flat. Different from – and far less attractive than – other bottles of this I’ve tasted and probably defective. The cork on our bottle was wet all the way to the top; since the wine showed well enough when carafed, I poured it; in retrospect, I should have exchanged it. (Buy again? Yes but maybe from another store.)
MWG November 22nd tasting (1/5): Two French sparklers
A tasting of 15 wines, including five from the November 22nd Cellier release and one importation valise. We began with two French sparklers.
Champagne grand cru, Réserve, H. Billiot ($49.75, 11818220)
75% Pinot Noir and 25% Chardonnay from up to 18 grand cru vineyards in Ambonnay. Usually a blend of three vintages. Fermented in stainless steel tanks. Does not undergo malolactic fermentation. Unfiltered. 13% ABV.
Browning apple and bread crust. Softly effervescent. Dry but rich, with a ripe-sweet fruit core (yellow apple and dried apricot) and plenty of acidity. A suggestion of brown sugar joins the minerals on the finish. Not bad though more complexity, tension and, well, dazzle would be welcome. (Buy again? Maybe.)
Vouvray mousseux 2010, Brut, Domaine Vincent Carême ($21.70, 11633591)
100% Chenin Blanc. The estate has been farming organically since 2002 and either has recently received organic certification or is about to. Made using the traditional method, with only yeast added for the second fermentation. Zero dosage. 13% ABV.
Complex and appealing nose: sour apple, lees, yeast, barley sugar, a hint of kerosene. Fine, sharp effervescence. The abundant acidity is checked by the faint residual sugar. Not a lot of flavour depth but a crystal-like structural depth. A minerally, faintly bitter streak that one taster described as burnt match lingers through the finish. Earlier bottles of this have shown better; the current shipment is just off the boat and may need a few weeks to settle down. (Buy again? Sure.)
MWG November 9th tasting: report (5/5)
Vacqueyras 2009, Cuvée Azalaïs, Domaine Le Sang des Cailloux ($28.25, 11796420)
70% Grenache, 20% Syrah, 10% Mourvèdre and Cinsault from 35- to 40-year-old vines, organically farmed but not yet certified as such (the 2010 vintage reportedly will be). Manually harvested. Destemmed. Fermented in concrete vats with native yeasts and daily pumping over. Matured a minimum of six months in large barrels. Bottled unfiltered and unfined. 14% ABV.
Plum, garrigue, spice. Fluid and nicely structured, with welcome acidity and fine tannins that linger through the finish. Initial salty plum and fig sweetened and deepened, with leather, minerals and licorice adding savour. Long. An excellent, terroir-driven Vacqueyras, about the best pairing imaginable for a garlic- and herb-scented leg of lamb. (Buy again? Yes.)
Naoussa 2009, Terre et Ciel, Domaine Thymiopoulos ($28.40, 11814368)
This 100% Xinomavro is a blend of organically farmed grapes from three parcels and 40- to 70-year-old vines. Fermented in stainless steel vats with native yeasts. Matured in a mix of Burgundy barrels, 20% new. Bottled unfiltered, unfined and with a small squirt of sulphur dioxide. The estate, which has been in the Thymiopoulos family for generations, used to sell its grapes to Boutari. Now-30-something Apostolo had other ideas: he attended wine school, stopped selling grapes, started making wines under his own name and began converting to biodynamic farming. 14.5% ABV.
We’re not in the Rhône Valley anymore, Toto: marked aromas of V8 juice, black raspberry jam, kirsch and menthol. Rich but not heavy fruit and a velvety mouth-feel. Dry. The initially raspy tannins soften as the wine breathes. Long, black cherry and earthy/slatey finish with spice notes. Not exactly my style but, along with its younger sibling, easily the best Xinomavro I’ve tasted. Will be interesting to see what some bottle age brings. (Buy again? If in the market for an exotically flavoured, fruit-forward but savoury and balanced wine, yes.)
Lirac 2010, La Dame Rousse, Domaine de la Mordorée ($22.00, 11690836)
A 50-50 blend of Grenache and Syrah from 40-year-old vines. Manually harvested. Destemmed and given a long maceration. Fermented for 30 days at 34ºC (93ºF). 14.5% ABV.
Leather, spice, plum and eventually kirsch. Started off well – dry, tannic, structured, ripe – but seemed to take on weight and flatten as it breathed. That heaviness and two-dimensionality together with the alcoholic heat made for a distinctly unrefreshing mouthful. Many people love Mordorée but I’m about ready to give up on it. (Buy again? No.)
Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2009, Cuvée Réservée, Domaine du Pégau ($75.00, 11521354)
80% Grenache, 6% Syrah, 4% Mourvèdre and 10% other varieties permitted in the appellation. Manually harvested. Fermented with the stems for ten to 14 days with native yeasts and twice daily pumping over. Slowly pressed. Allowed to settle over the winter, then racked into old oak barrels. Blended just before bottling. Bottled unfiltered and unfined. 14% ABV.
Horsehair, garrigue, turned earth, hint of tar, savoury meat, black fruit. Rich, dense and very ripe yet quite acidic. Structured though the tannins are fine. Long with a little kirschy heat flaring on the finish. At this point early in its life, lacking cohesion and devoid of charm. Unlike the 1995, which was as approachable and seductive in its youth as it was a year ago, this bordered on galumphing. Obviously a thoroughbred and likely to evolve into something impressive. But Pégau used to be thought of as one of the more “feminine” Châteauneufs, and I have a hard time imagining anyone ever using that descriptor for this wine, even 15 or 20 years down the road. (Buy again? Probably not.)
Brett happens 
Occhipintalypse Now
with 9 comments
If the frenzy surrounding last Thursday’s release of Arianna Occhipinti‘s 2011 SP68 Rosso wasn’t totally without precedent, it most certainly was for a sub-$25 wine. The mania was primed by a glowing profile of the winemaker in a major daily, rave reviews from local critics, rapt discussion on local online fora, Arianna herself at the Salon des vins d’importation privée pouring the wine and lively debates among wine geeks about the best strategy for procuring some of the 900 bottles to go on sale in the province.
Yes, only 900 bottles. And the wine was released in over 100 Sélection outlets. Do the math and you’ll see that most outlets – even high-profile ones like Laurier – were allocated a single six-bottle case. A few high-volume outlets (Atwater and Rockland, for example) received 12 bottles. One or two got a heady 18.
I arrived at Laurier about 20 minutes before opening and even then was second in line. Three others soon joined us. (The only other time in recent memory this has happened, the day of the SAQ’s first-ever release of a Lapierre Morgon, the 2009, there were two of us queuing at Laurier.) As soon as the door opened, we all rushed to the Cellier display. A wine advisor asked who had come for the SP68 – everyone raised his hand – and announced a one-bottle-per-customer policy, which left a bottle for him. Two minutes after opening, Laurier outlet was sold out.
I had other wines to buy for that evening’s tasting and had decided not to run off to other outlets in search of more SP68. But several MWG members and friends did just that. One was third in line at a 12-bottle store and scored the maximum of three. He then drove to an outlet that opened half an hour later, where he was first at the door. When allowed in, he inquired about the wine and was told there must have been an inventory error because the store had none of the 12 bottles then showing on saq.com. With other wines on his shopping list, he hung around for a few minutes, during which time he saw a wine advisor he knew from another outlet walk in, speak with the advisor who had told him the SP68 was AWOL and be given a shopping cart filled with the outlet’s entire allocation. Hotfooting it over to the shopping cart, the member prevailed upon the “reservist” to part with a couple from his dozen.
Other members and friends headed to less centrally located on-island outlets, where they managed to put their hands on a few flasks. All reported that the stores imposed a limit on the number of bottles a given customer could purchase.
A friend on the South Shore wasn’t so lucky. She arrived at her local outlet about 15 minutes before opening. Noticing several people in their cars with the motor running, she decided to wait by the door. As soon as she did, others scrambled to queue behind her. When the door opened, she took a minute to ask an employee where the wine was. Meanwhile, a man who’d been after her in the line snared all six of the outlet’s bottles. She hopped into her car and sped to the next nearest outlet. On entering, she saw another guy who’d come up empty-handed at the original outlet buying all six of this outlet’s bottles. He wasn’t willing to share but suggested she travel to a larger outlet that had 12 bottles. In the 15 minutes it took her to do so, they were snapped up, all by one person.
When I returned to the office in the early afternoon, I checked the online inventory for the wine. There were no bottles left on Montreal island, a couple showing in Laval and a few in farther flung outlets like Joliette. By Friday morning, even those were gone.
Why the detailed report? To illustrate that several things are fundamentally wrong with the SAQ’s current distribution model for highly sought-after wines.
First, the quantities. How could the SAQ have decided to purchase only 900 bottles? They were offered many more. (“Are you sure you didn’t drop a zero from that number” the agency representing the producer is reported to have asked the monopoly.) But the SAQ decided to “play it safe.” For a wine with a track record of selling like hotcakes through the more exclusive private import channel when the bottles were also $2 or $3 more expensive. For a wine that has been universally, ecstatically praised by the world wine media. For a wine that’s a favourite of local restaurateurs. For a wine that wine geeks across the city knew was going to cause a stampede.
Second, the day and hour of the release: outlet opening time (usually 9:30 or 10 a.m.) on a business day. I’m self-employed and so usually can swing it, but what do 9-to-5 types do? This is patently unfair.
Third, and most disturbingly, the inconsistencies around allocations to customers. On-island outlets at least had the sense not to let one customer walk away with all their bottles. But it was another story off island. And then there are the reports of staff in at least a couple of outlets reserving all or part of the outlet’s inventory for themselves and other employees.
Having been lucky enough to “discover” Arianna before she hit the big time, the MWG regularly purchased several cases of each vintage of the SP68 on a private import basis. Now that the SAQ’s stocking it, I’ll be surprised if the ten or so members who scoured the city in search of bottles managed to get a dozen among ourselves. What’s more, we had to do so by playing hookey and wasting time, effort and gas raiding outlet after outlet. Meanwhile some people who tried to score even one bottle couldn’t, while many others who would have liked to didn’t even have a chance.
The SAQ needs to correct this situation now.
Written by carswell
November 26, 2012 at 12:50
Posted in Commentary
Tagged with SAQ